Duty Free Allowance

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) men and (b) women were (i) charged with and (ii) convicted of carrying goods above the duty free allowance in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

John Healey: HMRC records do not differentiate between criminal offences concerned with duty-free and duty-paid goods, nor do they distinguish between men and women. However, the consolidated figures for all prosecutions for smuggling of alcohol or tobacco for the years between 1993 and 2000 are:
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 1993–94 44 
			 1994–95 515 
			 1995–96 438 
			 1996–97 502 
			 1997–98 531 
			 1998–99 575 
			 1999–2000 645 
			 2000–01(3)(4) 884 
			 2001–02(3)(4) 431 
			 2002–03(4) 429 
			 2003–04(4) 484 
		
	
	(3) Figures relate to those sentenced for tobacco offence only.
	(4) Figures include those sentenced or convicted for fraudulent evasion as well as those guilty of smuggling.
	The figures for 2004–05 will be published later this year in the HMRC Annual Report.

A Road Improvements

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent on improvements to A roads in the UK since 1997; and if he will list the transport budgets for each region for 2005–06.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department does not retain records of how much the Highways Agency or local authorities have spent specifically on 'A' roads in the UK since 1992.
	Our allocations for local transport capital investment for 2005–06 to regions (excluding London) are set out in the following table. This covers expenditure on local authority major transport schemes, integrated transport block and local road capital maintenance funding.
	
		2005–06: Local authority £ million
		
			 Region Major schemes(5) Integrated transport block allocation(6) Local road capital maintenance 
		
		
			 Eastern 33,999 64,950 91,119 
			 South West 32,315 57,815 107,685 
			 East Midlands 18,102 47,100 65,178 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 49,921 79,635 76,588 
			 West Midlands 62,271 72,600 82,105 
			 North West 26,653 112,848 88,144 
			 North East 27,989 33,400 44,170 
			 South East 51,661 84,580 105,008 
		
	
	(5) Schemes costing more than £5 million which have been fully approved for funding.
	(6) Improvement schemes costing less than £5 million.

Light Rail Schemes

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the usage figures have been for each light rail scheme currently in operation in each year since they commenced operation.

Alistair Darling: The following tables show the figures requested.
	
		Passenger journeys per year for modern light rail systems in England Million
		
			 System 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 
		
		
			 Tyne and Wear Metro 59.1 46.4 44.9 45.4 45.5 43.6 40.6 38.9 38.3 37.0 
			 Docklands Light Rail — — — 6.6 8.5 8.0 7.9 6.9 8.3 11.3 
			 Manchester Metrolink — — — — — — — 8.1 11.3 12.3 
			 Sheffield Supertram — — — — — — — — — 2.2 
			 West Midlands Metro — — — — — — — — — — 
			 Croydon Tramlink — — — — — — — — — — 
			 Nottingham Tram — — — — — — — — — — 
		
	
	
		
			   Million 
			 System 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 
		
		
			 Tyne and Wear Metro 35.9 35.4 35.0 33.8 32.7 32.5 33.4 36.6 37.9 36.8 
			 Docklands Light Rail 14.5 16.7 21.0 27.6 31.3 38.4 41.3 45.7 48.5 50.1 
			 Manchester Metrolink 12.6 13.4 13.8 13.2 14.2 17.2 18.2 18.8 18.9 19.7 
			 Sheffield Supertram 5.3 7.8 9.2 10.4 10.9 11.1 11.4 11.5 12.3 12.8 
			 West Midlands Metro — — — — 4.8 5.4 4.8 4.9 5.1 5.0 
			 Croydon Tramlink — — — — — 15.0 18.2 18.7 19.8 22.0 
			 Nottingham Tram — — — — — — — — 0.4 8.5

Railways

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the implications for safety of over-crowding on trains along (a) the Hastings to London Victoria and (b) Brighton to London Victoria lines; and what steps he plans to take to reduce the impact of overcrowding on train services;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the volume of passengers using peak time train services along the (a) Brighton to London Victoria and (b) Hastings to London Victoria line in 2004–05; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the over-crowding on trains along (a) the Hastings to London Victoria and (b) Brighton to London Victoria lines; and if he will make a statement.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 7 November 2005
	Crowding on all London passenger services, including between Hastings-London Victoria and Brighton-London Victoria are measured against Passengers in Excess of Capacity Rules (PIXC) rules. This is against the number of seats on longer-distance services and against total capacity (seats plus, standing) for services where the first stop that passengers alight (or last stop where passengers board) is not more than 20 minutes from the terminal station. This allows for the scheduled stops within the 20 minute threshold at Clapham Junction and East Croydon in both directions.
	The latest available count data (2004) shows that all morning and evening peak Brighton to Victoria and Hastings to Victoria services are within their official passenger capacities, except for the 1632 Victoria to Brighton service. The Train Operating Company has allocated less carriages to the 1632 Victoria to Brighton train in order to provide longer trains to meet the greater passenger demand in the high peak period after 1700. However, an alternative service between Victoria and Brighton is scheduled shortly after this service at 1636, and this does provide spare capacity.
	Ultimately the responsibility for the day-to-day safety and welfare of passengers using the railway rests with the Train Operating Companies. Focus is being given to improve timetabling, infrastructure maintenance and renewals and other factors that can impact on reliable delivery of train services, which will in turn impact on crowding levels.

Benefit Receipt (Kingston and Surbiton)

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the Kingston and Surbiton constituency have (a) applied for and (b) received the disability living allowance in each year since 1997.

Anne McGuire: The administration of disability living allowance and attendance allowance is a matter for the chief executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	Letter from Terry Moran to Mr. Edward Davey, dated 11 November 2005
	The Secretary of State has asked me, as Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service, to reply to your question concerning how many people in the Kingston and Surbiton constituency have (a) applied for and (b) received the disability living allowance in each year since 1997.
	The information requested at part (a) of your question is unavailable. This information is not retained at any geographical level other than for Great Britain and therefore cannot be produced.
	The information requested at part (b) of your question is as follows:
	
		Disability living allowance for Kingston and Surbiton parliamentary constituency as at May in each year from1997 to 2005 Thousand
		
			  Cases in Kingston and Surbiton parliamentary constituency 
		
		
			 2005 2.4 
			 2004 2.2 
			 2003 2.1 
			 2002 2.0 
			 2001 1.6 
			 2000 1.6 
			 1999 1.5 
			 1998 1.7 
			 1997 1.5 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Totals show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and excludes people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital or abroad for prolonged periods.
	2. Parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory.
	3. Numbers are rounded to the nearest hundred and are expressed in thousands.
	4. "-" Nil or negligible.
	5. "." Not applicable.
	6. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
	Source:
	DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study for totals and 5 per cent. samples for detail/long time series.
	I hope this is helpful.

Child Support Agency

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many formal complaints his Department has received from West Lancashire about the Child Support Agency.

James Plaskitt: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to the hon. Members for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Michael Moore) and Hornsey and Wood Green (Lynne Featherstone) on 25 October 2005, Official Report, column 279W.

Learning and Skills Council

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list in ascending order the percentage change in the adult participation in further education budgets for each Learning and Skills Council sub-region between 2003–04 and 2004–05.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 21 October 2005
	The Department allocates funds for further education and training in the post-16 learning and skills sector, including adult participation, to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) working through 47 local offices. The LSC was established in 2001 bringing the planning and funding of post-16 education together under one body within a framework set by Government.
	In 2003–04 the LSC spent £1,756 million on adult participation nationally. In 2004–05 this increased to £1,847 million—an increase of 10 per cent.
	My Department does not hold figures at local or regional levels. Mark Haysom, the council's chief executive has responded to you with further details about the specific issues you have raised. A copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.
	Letter from Mark Haysom to Mr. John Grogan, dated 9 November 2005
	I write in response to your recent Parliamentary Questions to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills referred to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) by Bill Rammell regarding the percentage change in 16 to 18 years and adult participation budgets for education in local Learning and Skills Councils and Regions between 2003–04 and 2004–05.
	The LSC allocates funds for further education through the 47 local Learning and Skills Councils. The funds are allocated on an academic year basis.
	The attached spreadsheets show the distribution of the FE funding in ascending order by local Council and at regional level showing the cash and percentage variance between 2003/04 and 2004/05.
	I hope you find this helpful.
	
		Local council level £
		
			   16–18 
			   2003/04 2004/05 2003/04 to 2004/05 2003/04 to 2004/05 
			 Local council Region Allocation Allocation Cash variance Percentage variance 
		
		
			 Northumberland North East 4,149,134 4,346,485 197,351 4.76 
			 Herefordshire and Worcestershire West Midlands 30,164,075 32,805,210 2,641,135 8.76 
			 Black Country West Midlands 49,511,303 53,918,189 4,406,886 8.90 
			 Coventry and Warwickshire West Midlands 34,128,247 37,212,976 3,084,729 9.04 
			 Wiltshire and Swindon South West 24,629,000 26,964,435 2,335,435 9.48 
			 Shropshire West Midlands 20,910,762 22,911,860 2,001,098 9.57 
			 Somerset South West 28,585,480 31,328,688 2,743,208 9.60 
			 South Yorkshire Yorkshire and Humberside 50,961,859 55,910,624 4,948,765 9.71 
			 Essex East of England 69,871,857 76,693,961 6,822,104 9.76 
			 Birmingham and Solihull West Midlands 64,710,412 71,256,201 6,545,789 10.12 
			 North Yorkshire Yorkshire and Humberside 27,099,782 29,852,000 2,752,218 10.16 
			 Bedfordshire and Luton East of England 23,081,000 25,431,000 2,350,000 10.18 
			 Cumbria North West 14,037,453 15,469,417 1,431,964 10.20 
			 Cheshire and Warrington North West 35,508,800 39,131,079 3,622,279 10.20 
			 Staffordshire West Midlands 40,115,108 44,282,477 4,167,369 10.39 
			 County Durham North East 16,279,252 17,973,450 1,694,198 10.41 
			 Lincolnshire and Rutland East Midlands 19,287,552 21,341,237 2,053,685 10.65 
			 Greater Manchester North West 151,547,000 167,886,674 16,339,674 10.78 
			 Gloucestershire South West 21,121,473 23,413,352 2,291,879 10.85 
			 London South London 65,809,153 73,407,987 7,598,834 11.55 
			 Leicestershire East Midlands 35,954,804 40,124,809 4,170,005 11.60 
			 Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire and  Buckinghamshire South East 34,065,272 38,030,891 3,965,619 11.64 
			 Tees Valley North East 50,361,276 56,303,066 5,941,790 11.80 
			 Nottinghamshire East Midlands 40,560,418 45,353,801 4,793,383 11.82 
			 Humberside Yorkshire and Humberside 50,383,173 56,528,970 6,145,797 12.20 
			 West Yorkshire Yorkshire and Humberside 76,342,462 85,665,482 9,323,020 12.21 
			 Lancashire North West 77,185,872 86,726,000 9,540,128 12.36 
			 Tyne and Wear North East 48,098,648 54,122,464 6,023,816 12.52 
			 London East London 83,536,737 94,260,009 10,723,272 12.84 
			 Hertfordshire East of England 29,927,000 33,769,515 3,842,515 12.84 
			 West of England South West 37,375,423 42,248,021 4,872,598 13.04 
			 Greater Merseyside North West 62,769,780 71,173,871 8,404,091 13.39 
			 London Central London 60,281,227 68,615,179 8,333,952 13.83 
			 Derbyshire East Midlands 26,968,993 30,864,603 3,895,610 14.44 
			 Surrey South East 55,096,612 63,251,852 8,155,240 14.80 
			 Bournemouth. Dorset and Poole South West 17,584,069 20,226,960 2,642,891 15.03 
			 London West London 49,624,216 57,426,107 7,801,891 15.72 
			 Devon and Cornwall South West 61,558,736 71,420,289 9,861,553 16.02 
			 Sussex South East 64,940,000 75,669,591 10,729,591 16.52 
			 Hampshire and Isle of Wight South East 116,079,531 136,064,913 19,985,382 17.22 
			 London North London 46,370,518 54,400,121 8,029,603 17.32 
			 Cambridgeshire East of England 29,206,758 34,265,301 5,058,543 17.32 
			 Berkshire South East 21,102,970 24,758,140 3,655,170 17.32 
			 Norfolk East of England 27,796,306 32,724,879 4,928,573 17.73 
			 Northamptonshire East Midlands 19,252,000 23,314,158 4,062,158 21.10 
			 Kent and Medway South East 43,698,000 55,240,992 11,542,992 26.42 
			 Suffolk East of England 15,124.859 19,991,757 4,866,898 32.18 
			   2,072,754,362 2,344,079,043 271,324,681 13.09 
		
	
	
		Regional level £
		
			  16–18 
			  2003/04 2004/05 2003/04 to 2004/05 2003/04 to 2004/05 
			 Region Allocation Allocation Cash variance Percentage variance 
		
		
			 West Midlands 239,539,907 262,386,913 22,847,006 9.54 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 204,787,276 227,957,076 23,169,800 11.31 
			 North West 341,048,905 380,387,041 39,338,136 11.53 
			 North East 118,888,310 132,745,465 13,857,155 11.66 
			 South West 190,854,181 215,601,745 24,747,564 12.97 
			 East Midlands 142,023,767 160,998,608 18,974,841 13.36 
			 London 305,621,851 348,109,403 42,487,552 13.90 
			 East of England 195,007,780 222,876,413 27,868,633 14.29 
			 South East 334,982,385 393,016,379 58,033,994 17.32 
			  2,072,754,362 2,344,079,043 271,324,681 13.09

Looked-after Children

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to reduce the percentage of looked-after children subject to a final warning or reprimand.

Maria Eagle: The percentage of looked-after children convicted or subject to a final warning or reprimand fell from 10.3 per cent. in 2001 to 9.3 per cent. in 2004. Our work to raise educational achievement and improve placement stability will contribute towards continued reductions in offending and improvements in other outcomes for looked after children. Funded by the Government, MACRO have recently published a good practice guide on reducing offending by looked after children, which reinforces the message that looked after children must be provided with constructive supervision and guidance to reduce the risk of offending, and that those who have offended must be offered appropriate services to minimise the likelihood of re-offending. This publication has been distributed to all Directors of Children's Services and all YOT managers. We intend to consult early in 2006 on further wide ranging proposals for transforming outcomes for looked-after children.

Under-achievement

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the capacity of schools to provide mentoring for pupils from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Beverley Hughes: The Excellence in Cities Programme introduced Learning Mentor support to schools and colleges, with the funding targeted towards disadvantaged groups and areas of under achievement (through around 60 full partnerships and 78 smaller clusters).
	The Excellence in Cities programme was specifically introduced to tackle years of underachievement in our most socially and economically disadvantaged areas. The additional support and funding provided by the Excellence in Cities programme has significantly increased the capacity of schools in deprived areas to address the socio economic factors of under attainment. Partnership working has allowed schools to target resources and strategies to raise attainment across whole communities. Strands such as Gifted and Talented, Learning Mentors, Learning Support Units, City Learning Centres, Aimhigher and Study Support have, among other things, pioneered personalised learning programmes; tackled barriers to learning; extended study opportunities for pupils, providing access to state of the art ICT; enabled ICT led innovation in the delivery of the curriculum; fostered new approaches to teaching and learning; kept at risk pupils in school and engaged in the curriculum; and enhanced continuing professional development for teachers.
	This funding will become part of mainstream provision from 1 April 2006 as an element of the ring fenced and index linked Dedicated Schools Grant. The Dedicated Schools Grant will be available to all schools and will enable Learning Mentor and other related provision to spread more broadly, reflecting local need.
	It is important to bear in mind that there are additional forms of mentoring provided within schools which are not provided by school learning mentors (employed by the school/local authority) e.g. peer and voluntary mentoring. There is also the work carried out by the Mentoring and Befriending Foundation http.www.mandbf.org.uk/.

Cancer

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information her Department holds on the United Kingdom morbidity and mortality rates for skin cancer in each year since 1979; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The latest available figures for the incidence and mortality of melanoma skin cancer in England and Wales are for the year 2003. Age-standardised incidence and mortality rates by sex for the years 1979 to 2003 are shown in the table.
	
		Age-standardised rates(12) of melanoma skin cancer(13) in England and Wales, by sex, 1979–2003 Rates per 100,000
		
			  Incidence Mortality(14) 
			  Male Female Male Female 
		
		
			 1979 2.8 4.8 1.6 1.6 
			 1980 3.0 5.0 1.6 1.6 
			 1981 3.2 5.4 1.7 1.6 
			 1982 3.3 5.7 1.7 1.8 
			 1983 3.6 6.1 1.7 1.5 
			 1984 3.5 6.1 1.9 1.7 
			 1985 4.6 7.6 1.9 1.7 
			 1986 4.7 7.4 1.8 1.9 
			 1987 5.4 8.4 1.9 1.8 
			 1988 6.3 9.0 1.9 1.9 
			 1989 5.7 8.4 2.0 1.9 
			 1990 6.0 7.5 2.2 1.9 
			 1991 5.9 7.7 2.3 1.8 
			 1992 6.5 8.4 2.2 1.7 
			 1993 7.5 9.6 2.6 2.2 
			 1994 7.4 9.4 2.4 2.2 
			 1995 7.3 9.6 2.6 2.0 
			 1996 7.3 9.2 2.5 2.0 
			 1997 7.8 9.3 2.5 2.0 
			 1998 8.4 9.8 2.6 2.1 
			 1999 8.1 9.6 2.7 2.0 
			 2000 9.7 11.1 2.8 2.1 
			 2001 10.1 11.7 2.6 2.0 
			 2002 10.6 12.2 2.7 1.9 
			 2003 11.0 12.5 2.8 2.0 
		
	
	(12) Directly age standardised using the European standard population.
	(13) Melanoma skin cancer is defined as code 172 in the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD9) and as code C43 in the Tenth Revision (ICD10).
	(14) Data is for registrations of death per calendar year from 1979 to 1992 and for occurrences of death per calendar year from 1993 onwards.
	Sources:
	Office for National Statistics
	Welsh cancer intelligence and surveillance unit.

Easyway (International) Ltd

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether her Department has received a request for a meeting from Allen Carr's Easyway (International) Ltd.

Caroline Flint: The Department has received several requests to meet the Allen Carr Easyway (International) Ltd.
	The Department regularly receives approaches about smoking cessation techniques and recognises that there are a number of methods that may help smokers to quit. In terms of national policy, the focus is on those methods with accumulated independent evidence of efficacy.
	The Department, following guidance from the National Institute for Health Clinical Excellence (NICE), endorsed the use on the national health service of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and bupropion (Zyban) as effective stop smoking aids. Used in conjunction with trained support through the NHS stop smoking service, smokers are up to four times more likely to quit successfully than using willpower alone.

Hospital-acquired Infections

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 12 September 2005, Official Report, column 2695W, on mandatory surveillance, how many incidents of (a) the glycopeptide resistant enterococci, (b) orthopaedic surgical site infections and (c) serious untoward incidents associated with infection there have been in (i) England, (ii) each region, (iii) each strategic health authority and (iv) each NHS trust.

Jane Kennedy: Mandatory reporting of glycopeptide resistant enterococcal blood stream infections (bacteraemias) was introduced in October 2003 and a total of 620 bacteraemias were reported in the year from October 2003 to September 2004. Data for England and its regions was published in the "Communicable Disease Report (CDR) Weekly" on 25 August 2005 1 and information on individual trusts was published on the Department's website 2 . Data for individual strategic health authorities (SHAs) have not been published.
	Mandatory reporting of orthopaedic surgical site infections was introduced in April 2004 and in the first year of reporting data on 41,242 orthopaedic operations were analysed and 593 infections reported. Data for individual trusts was published on the Department's website on 28 October 2005 3 and a fuller report has been published by the Health Protection Agency 4 . Data is not available by region or SHA.
	Reporting of serious untoward incidents associated with hospital infections was introduced in September 2003 and a report will be published later this year.
	1 Results of the first year of mandatory glycopeptide resistant enterococci (GRE) reporting: October 2003 to September 2004. "Communicable Disease Report (CDR) Weekly" 2005; 15 (34) 25 August 2005:www.hpa.org.uk/cdr/archives/2005/BAct_GRE_ 3405.pdf.
	2 Department of Health mandatory GRE bacteraemia surveillance scheme. GRE reports by national health service acute trust in England October 2003 to September 2004:
	www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/11/83/59/04118359.pdf.
	3 Surveillance of surgical site infection in orthopaedic surgery: mandatory surveillance of surgical site infection in orthopaedic surgery: Report of data collected between April 2004 and March 2005:
	www.dh.org.uk/PublicationsAndStatistics/Publications/PublicationsStatistics/PublicationsStatisticsArticle/fs/en?CONTENT_ID=4122133&chk=5Wg/Y5.
	4 Mandatory surveillance of surgical site infection in orthopaedic surgery, April 2004 to March 2005:
	www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/hai/SSI_mandatory_ 0405report.pdf.

Kettering General Hospital

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) in-patients and (b) out-patients have been treated at Kettering general hospital in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		Number of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) and patients at the Kettering general hospital national health service trust for each year between 1997–98 and 2003–04
		
			  FCEs Patient counts 
		
		
			 1997–98 59,793 34,983 
			 1998–99 62,318 36,976 
			 1999–2000 63,485 37,414 
			 2000–01 64,701 38,685 
			 2001–02 64,101 39,724 
			 2002–03 60,141 37,168 
			 2003–04 65,229 39,888 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. A FCE is defined as a period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. Please note that the figures do not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one episode of care within the year.
	2. Patient counts are based on the unique patient identifier HESID. This identifier is derived based on patient's date of birth, postcode, sex, local patient identifier and NHS number, using an agreed algorithm. Where data are incomplete, HESID might erroneously link episodes or fail to recognise episodes for the same patient. Care is therefore needed, especially where duplicate records persist in the data. The patient count cannot be summed across a table where patients may have episodes in more than one cell.
	3. Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data—that is, the data is ungrossed. Hospital episode statistics, NHS Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Methylphenidate

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the annual percentage change was in prescriptions of methylphenidate to children since 1995.

Jane Kennedy: The Department do not hold information on who receives medication and so does not have information by age. However we do have data, which is sample based, for exemption categories not required to pay a charge. This is shown in the table.
	
		Estimates of annual percentage increase in prescriptions of methylphenidate to children since 2000
		
			  Percentage 
		
		
			 2000 18.2 
			 2001 21.4 
			 2002 19.7 
			 2003 22.6 
			 2004 12.6 
		
	
	The data includes children under 16 years and young people in full-time education aged 16 to 18. Information is not available for the earlier period requested.

NHS Dentistry

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much her Department spent per capita on NHS dentistry in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: The estimated spend per capita on the general dental service (CDS) in Jarrow constituency in the year ending 31 March 2001 was £23.38. Figures for other years are not available because population estimates for other years are not available.
	Estimates of spend per capita on the CDS in South Tyneside, the North East Government office region (GOR), Northumberland, Tyne and Wear strategic health authority (SHA) and in England for the years ending as at 31 March for 1998 to 2004 are shown in the table.
	These estimates do not include expenditure on national health service dental services for pilot personal dental services agreements or the community (salaried) dental service.
	
		Estimated spend per capita on CDS dentistry in Northumberland, Tyne and Wear SHA area, North East GOR and England as at year end 31 March for each year £
		
			  South Tyneside local authority area Northumberland, Tyne and Wear SHA North East GOR England 
		
		
			 1998 22.18 18.98 19.31 18.07 
			 1999 23.85 20.28 20.58 19.00 
			 2000 25.15 20.88 21.26 19.54 
			 2001 26.99 21.38 22.00 20.23 
			 2002 27.26 23.22 23.84 21.66 
			 2003 28.21 24.25 24.64 22.19 
			 2004 28.76 25.46 26.09 23.42 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures have been provided by the NHS Health and Social Care Information Centre. The data sources are the Dental Practice Board and the Office of National Statistics.
	2. South Tyneside local authority area includes Jarrow and South Shields constituency areas.
	3. Spend per capita was calculated by taking the total fees plus commitment payments less revenue from patient charges divided by the population.

NHS Dentistry

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much her Department has spent per capita on NHS dentistry in (a) the Tamworth constituency, (b) Staffordshire, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England in each year since 1997.

Rosie Winterton: The estimated spend per capita on the general dental service (GDS) in Tamworth constituency in the year ending 31 March 2001 was £11.83. Figures for other years are not available because population estimates for other years are not available.
	Estimates of spend per capita on the GDS in Staffordshire, the West Midlands Government office region (GOR), Shropshire and Staffordshire strategic health authority (SHA) and in England for the years ending as at 31 March for 1998 to 2004 are shown in the table.
	These estimates do not include expenditure on national health service dental services for pilot personal dental services agreements or the community (salaried) dental service.
	
		Estimated spend per capita on GDS dentistry in Shropshire and Staffordshire SHA area, West Midlands GOR and England as at year end 31 March for each year £
		
			  Staffordshire local authority area Shropshire and Staffordshire SHA West Midlands GOR England 
		
		
			 1998 14.44 13.72 16.66 18.07 
			 1999 14.99 14.24 17.64 19.00 
			 2000 15.39 14.71 18.35 19.54 
			 2001 15.93 15.36 18.86 20.23 
			 2002 16.52 16.58 20.37 21.66 
			 2003 16.89 16.99 21.31 22.19 
			 2004 17.41 17.87 22.86 23.42 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures have been provided by the NHS Health and Social Care Information Centre. The data source is the Dental Practice Board and the Office of National Statistics.
	2. Staffordshire local authority area includes Burton, Cannock Chase, Lichfield, Newcastle-under-Lyme, South Staffordshire, Stafford, Staffordshire Moorlands, Stoke-on-Trent North, Stone and Tamworth constituency areas.
	3. Spend per capita was calculated by taking the total fees plus commitment payments less revenue from patient charges divided by population.

NHS Dentistry

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many dentists serve the Shropshire Primary Care Trust;
	(2)  how many dentists in Shrewsbury and Atcham constituency (a) operate fully within the NHS and (b) only offer NHS treatment for children.

Rosie Winterton: As at 30 September 2005, there were 153 national health service dentists with a general dental services (CDS) or personal dental services (PDS) contract within Shropshire County Primary Care Trust (PCT).
	As at 30 September 2005, there were 80 NHS dentists with either a GDS or PDS contract within Shrewsbury and Atcham parliamentary constituency.
	The data source is the Dental Practice Board. A dentist with a GDS or PDS contract may provide as little or as much NHS treatment as he or she chooses or has agreed with the relevant PCT. The Dental Practice Board has no information concerning the amount of time dedicated to private or NHS work by individual dentists.
	Information about who dentists offer to treat is not collected centrally. However, an analysis of NHS patient registrations data as at 1 June 2005 shows that within Shropshire County PCT there were six dentists having only children registered. This analysis is not available at parliamentary constituency area.

Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if she will delay the standard branded generics review until the completion of the Office of Fair Trading market study into the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme;
	(2)  when a decision is expected on the current standard branded generics; and whether the Office of Fair Trading inquiry into the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme has an impact on its outcome;
	(3)  what discussions she has had with the Office of Fair Trading regarding its inquiry into the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme;
	(4)  whether standard branded generics are covered by the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 7 November 2005
	Standard branded generics are covered by the provisions of the pharmaceutical price regulation scheme (PPRS), subject to the outcome of a public consultation on proposals to transfer them to arrangements for the reimbursement for generic medicines. The Department is currently reviewing the responses to proposals that a specified list of oral solid dose standard branded generics should be removed from the PPRS. These responses require, and will be given, careful consideration. The Department will not rush to a conclusion or set any deadline that may constrain its deliberations.
	Departmental officials have held preliminary discussions with The Office of Fair Trading on its market study into the PPRS.

Public Opinion Surveys

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many public opinion surveys were conducted by her Department and its arm's length bodies in the last six months; what the (a) subject matter, (b) date, (c) cost and (d) company used to conduct the research was in each case; and if she will place copies of the results of each survey in the Library.

Jane Kennedy: The Department commissions public opinion surveys on various subjects when this is the most effective and appropriate means of building up an evidence base on which to take policy development forward. The information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department does not monitor the number, cost or subject matter of public opinion surveys commissioned by its arm's length bodies.
	I am aware that Allen Carr's Easyway (International) Ltd is in contact with NICE to make their case and I am sure that, in deciding what should be available on the NHS, this is the appropriate route.

Rehabilitation (Milton Keynes)

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the average number of specialist rehabilitation beds per 1,000 people in North East Milton Keynes in the latest year for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: Information about the number of specialist rehabilitation beds is not collected or held centrally by the Department. All data relating to bed provision which is collected by the Department is shown on its website at:
	www.performance.doh.gov.uk/hospitalactivity/data_requests/beds_open_overnight.htm

SARS

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she has had with Havering council regarding contingency plans in the event of a SARS or tuberculosis epidemic in that area.

Jane Kennedy: The Department has not had any direct contact with Havering council to discuss contingency plans for an epidemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) or tuberculosis (TB).
	The Department's emergency preparedness division has regular liaisons and discussions with the strategic health authorities' (SHAs) emergency planning leads. The SHAs have responsibility for ensuring that all national health service trusts have major incident plans in place and are prepared to deal with a range of incidents, that include SARS and other infectious diseases. These plans are developed with multi-agency input and are regularly tested and reviewed.
	With regard to TB, the Chief Medical Officer launched the TB action plan in October 2004. The plan is a commitment to tackle rising rates of TB through 10 key areas of work, and identifies some of the underlying reasons for the rise in TB rates. This is a national plan for England and local TB services are expected to develop their own plans reflecting local conditions.
	Local TB outbreaks are managed in accordance with standard procedures by local health protection units, which are part of the Health Protection Agency. In the event of a TB outbreak, the local consultant in communicable disease control would trace contacts of people who had significant exposure to someone with TB. Those contacts would be screened for disease and treated as appropriate.
	The plan is available on the Department's website at
	www.dh.gov.uk/PublicationsAndStatistics/Publications/PublicationsPolicyAndGuidance/PublicationsPolicyAnd GuidanceArticle/fs/en?CONTENT_ID=4090417&chk= DsgbSP
	SARS is not currently regarded as being a world-wide problem. The last cases were in China in 2004. However, the possibility of SARS re-emerging remains and there is a need for continuing vigilance. Clinicians and other healthcare professionals have been asked to remain vigilant to the possibility of SARS, even though the threat to the United Kingdom remains low at this time.
	Information on SARS and guidance documents are available on the Health Protection Agency's website at
	www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/SARS/menu.htm
	and also on the Department's website at
	www.dh.gov.uk/PolicyAndGuidance/HealthAndSocialCare Topics/SevereAcuteRespiratorySyndrome/SARSGeneral Information/fs/en

Bird Markets

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the Government had plans to ban bird markets, fairs and shows prior to the European Commission decision.

Ben Bradshaw: The Government had discussed with stakeholders and placed on the Defra website an analysis of the possible precautionary measures that could be adopted, but there were no plans to ban bird markets, fairs and shows prior to the European Commission decision.

Energy Efficiency

Peter Law: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will place in the Library copies of papers distributed at the conference jointly held in London with the European Commission on 2 November entitled Europe and an Energy Efficient World: Acting and Learning Together; what assessment she has made of the benefits which will accrue to companies in (a) Wales and (b) Blaenau Gwent from the new initiatives proposed; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: Conference proceedings are being collated in time for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 11 and COP/MOP1) in Montreal, which commences on 28 November. I have asked for copies to be placed in the Library. All papers will be placed on the conference website: http://olive360.com/defra/energyefficiency together with the many case studies that participants have forwarded to us.
	The purpose of the conference was to bring together representatives from a wide range of countries and with a wide range of backgrounds in energy efficiency and to learn from the richness of their experiences. The conference considered policy issues surrounding the promotion of energy services, better products standards and labelling and how to better engage with and involve citizens in energy efficiency. Summary papers of the discussions will be used to inform several activities.
	It will inform debate on the European Commission's Green Paper on Energy Efficiency; the development of the EU Action Plan on Energy Efficiency and the wider EU framework of legislation and programmes, including R&D into energy efficiency, which will have a direct impact on UK energy efficiency policy and hence potentially on individual firms and businesses. No assessment has been made of the specific benefits to companies in Wales or Blaenau Gwent.
	It will inform the UK's preparations for the UN Commission on Sustainable Development's review of the energy commitments in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation in 2006–07.
	Furthermore, members of the Task Force on Sustainable Products under the UNEP Framework Programme on Sustainable Consumption and Production were present at the conference and used the debate on international product policy to inform their meeting held on 4 November in London.
	We will use the conclusions in our discussions on practical measures to support our G8 commitments to increase efforts on energy efficiency domestically and across the world. We will also ensure that the conference proceedings are circulated to G8 colleagues, in recognition of the importance of energy efficiency in the Gleneagles Plan of Action.

Warm Front Scheme (Milton Keynes)

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many residents in the North East Milton Keynes constituency were (a) eligible for and (b) received grants under the Warm Front Scheme in each of the last five years.

Elliot Morley: Information on the exact number of residents in North East Milton Keynes eligible for Warm Front is not available. However, on the basis of the statistical modelling used by the Warm Front Scheme Manager it is estimated that around 4,800 households in North East Milton Keynes could currently be eligible for assistance from the Scheme.
	Between the launch of the Warm Front Scheme in June 2000 and the end of March 2005, the number of households assisted in each year in North East Milton Keynes are as follows:
	
		
			  Households assisted 
		
		
			 2000–01 155 
			 2001–02 210 
			 2002–03 170 
			 2003–04 206 
			 2004–05 119 
			 Total 860

Energy Efficiency

David Chaytor: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what proportion of current building stock in England meets the thermal insulation standards established by part J of the building regulations; what steps are being taken to increase this proportion; and when he estimates the building stock will meet fully the new building standards.

Yvette Cooper: Part L applies whenever buildings are constructed, altered, extended or subjected to a material change of use. A further improvement in standards will come into effect next April. We estimate that around 2 per cent. to 4 per cent. of existing dwellings meet current (2002) part L insulation standards.
	Separately, the Warm Front and Decent Homes programmes and the Energy Efficiency Commitment are increasing standards for existing homes. We are also undertaking a further review to consider how best to improve the sustainability of existing dwellings.
	For buildings other than dwellings around 4 per cent. of the total floor area meets current insulation standards, with up to a further 4 per cent. being upgraded each year. It is not economic or practical to improve all buildings to new building standards.

Home Information Packs

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of whether larger or older homes are likely to incur higher costs in producing a home information pack than small or recently built houses; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: Most of the documents required in the pack will not cost any more for a larger or older property than they would for a smaller or recently built house: For example, evidence of title and copies of warranties will be unaffected by the age or size of the property.
	Searches are charged at a rate set by the local authority, irrespective of the size or location of the house. Consumers will, however, be able to have searches undertaken by a private search company which will charge at a market rate.
	The cost of the Home Condition Report (HCR) will be determined by the market and will vary depending on the size and possibly the location and type of property.

Housing

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what process the Government plans to adopt in relation to the procedure for an owner reclaiming property seized by a local authority under an empty dwelling management order.

Yvette Cooper: Provisions in the Housing Act 2004 provide that an Empty Dwelling Management Order may be revoked before the order is due to cease either on the initiative of a local authority, or on application to the authority by a relevant person, provided the authority:
	(a) conclude there are no steps they could appropriately take to secure occupation of the dwelling;
	(b) is satisfied the dwelling will either become or continue to be occupied following revocation;
	(c) is satisfied the dwelling is to be sold;
	(d) a final or further final Empty Dwelling Management Order is to be made;
	(e) conclude that revocation would be appropriate to prevent or stop interference with the rights of a third party;
	(f) consider there are other circumstances for revoking the order.
	If the dwelling is occupied at the time the revocation is proposed, the order may only be revoked with the consent of the relevant proprietor. A local authority may make revocation subject to payment of any expenditure properly incurred that has not already been recouped from rental income. A relevant person may appeal to a residential property tribunal against a decision of a local authority to revoke or refuse to revoke an Empty Dwelling Management Order.

Local Government

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  whether councils graded (a) excellent and (b) good under the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) are subject to (i) future CPA inspections and (ii) inspections from inspectorates other than the Audit Commission; and whether they are required to submit best value performance (A) information and (B) plans;
	(2)  if he will list the freedoms that local authorities graded (a) excellent and (b) good under the Comprehensive Performance Assessment received in relation to local government inspection.

Phil Woolas: All councils are and will continue to be subject to inspection. Key targets for reductions in the inspection of local authorities were set out in the November 2002 announcement on Freedoms and Flexibilities. These include an exemption from virtually all inspection for councils in the excellent CPA category and a 25 per cent. reduction for councils in the good category.
	Overall, significant reductions have been secured in the inspection burden placed on English single tier and county councils, with the greatest reductions focussed on excellent and good councils.
	Between 2001–02 and 2004–05 the number of days inspectors from the Audit Commission, Ofsted, Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) and Benefit Fraud Inspectorate (BFI) spent in councils had reduced by over one-third and the number of inspections undertaken had reduced by more than 50 per cent.
	The Audit Commission, which the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) sponsors, anticipates that by 2006–07, the volume of inspections needed for CPA, including the corporate assessments planned for that year, should fall by 68 per cent. from the 2002–03 level. Excellent councils will only be subject to inspection where there are grounds for serious concern in a particular service, and good councils will continue to receive a significant reduction in inspection.
	In accordance with ODPM Circular 02/2004, authorities categorised in CPA as excellent and good only need to provide the minimum essential information for Government to monitor performance, namely:
	outturn data for Best Value Performance Indicators (BVPIs);
	targets for BVPIs in the current year and subsequent 2 years; and
	confirmation that they are adopting the Code of Practice in their approach to workforce matters and contracting.
	They are also able to annex the information to their annual corporate plan, rather than producing a separate Best Value Performance Plan.

Sustainable Development

David Howarth: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what sustainable development requirements he has placed on his Department's (a) executive agencies, (b) advisory non-departmental bodies, (c) executive non-departmental bodies, (d) tribunals, (e) public corporations and (f) other bodies; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The UK Sustainable Development Strategy commits departments and their executive agencies to producing Action Plans setting out the steps they are taking to implement the Strategy. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will be publishing its Sustainable Development Action Plan in December 2005 and it is intended that this will cover steps being taking across the Office and its three executive agencies to promote Sustainable Development.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM), its Executive Agencies and the Government Offices for the Regions are covered by the requirements of the Framework for Sustainable Development on the Government Estate (FSDGE) which requires Departments and their Executive Agencies to improve their performance in utility, land and resource use across their estates.
	The guidance on sustainable development in Cabinet Office's "Non-Departmental Public Bodies: A Guide for Departments" applies directly to all of ODPM's executive and advisory non-departmental public bodies. Other sponsored bodies are aware of this guidance and would apply it as appropriate.

Citizenship Tests

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether people from abroad with only limited English need to pass the Life in the UK test to gain British citizenship.

Andy Burnham: All those applying for naturalisation as UK citizens will need to demonstrate that they have a sufficient knowledge of life in this country unless they are exempt, for instance on grounds of age.
	As first set out in the written statement dated 15 June 2005, Official Report, columns 15–16WS, there are two ways of doing this. An applicant may qualify by passing the Life in the UK test, or by successfully completing an accredited ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) course which includes approved teaching materials on the theme of citizenship.

Crime

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many convictions for each category of crime there have been in (a) Essex, (b) the Metropolitan police area of London and (c) Hertfordshire in each of the last five years for which figures are available; what the (i) conviction rate and (ii) clear-up rate for each category was in that period; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: Information on the number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for each category of offence in Essex, the Metropolitan police force area and Hertfordshire, 1999 to 2003, is given in the table together with the conviction rates. Statistics for 2004 will be published in late November.
	The detections rate statistics are based on the number of offences recorded and detected by the police in England and Wales. These data are not comparable with those for convictions, which look at the actual number of defendants found guilty. Data on detection rates are provided in table 2.
	
		Detection rates by offence group and police force area Percentage
		
			 Police force area Total Violence against the person Sexual offences Robbery Burglary Theft and handling stolen goods Fraud and forgery Criminal damage Drug offences Other offences 
		
		
			 2000–01   
			 Essex 26 78 56 26 13 18 30 15 96 67 
			 Metropolitan Police 15 28 31 12 10 9 10 9 89 46 
			 Hertfordshire 24 74 65 34 14 18 35 12 96 66 
			
			 2001–02   
			 Essex 26 79 50 25 13 19 28 14 95 67 
			 Metropolitan Police 14 26 32 11 10 9 10 8 84 43 
			 Hertfordshire 24 80 68 31 11 20 38 12 99 80 
			
			 2002–03   
			 Essex 27 71 40 21 13 17 22 15 93 63 
			 Metropolitan Police 14 24 33 13 13 8 9 8 82 44 
			 Hertfordshire 23 66 53 31 15 18 23 12 97 68 
			
			 2003–04   
			 Essex 28 69 37 21 12 17 24 15 95 66 
			 Metropolitan Police 15 26 34 12 12 8 13 9 87 49 
			 Hertfordshire 25 64 54 34 17 17 21 14 93 67 
			
			 2004–05   
			 Essex 27 63 33 23 12 17 28 15 93 74 
			 Metropolitan Police 21 43 35 15 13 10 12 13 97 61 
			 Hertfordshire 29 68 41 36 21 19 21 15 95 76 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Offences detected in the current year may have been initially recorded in earlier years and for this reason percentages may exceed 100.
	2. Number of recorded crimes and detections will be affected by changes in reporting and recording. For more information see Chapter 3 in 'Crime in England and Wales 2002/03'.
	
		Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts for all offences by offence type, with conviction rates(17). Essex, Hertfordshire and Metropolitan police force areas, 1999–2003
		
			  1999 2000 2001 
			 Police force area Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) 
		
		
			 Essex  
			 Violence against the person 1,454 622 43 1,361 569 42 1,547 613 40 
			 Sexual offences 228 81 36 151 81 54 195 66 34 
			 Burglary 828 533 64 837 436 52 717 403 56 
			 Robbery 132 89 67 153 78 51 198 80 40 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 3,669 2,815 77 3,473 2,572 74 3,476 2,677 77 
			 Fraud and forgery 591 411 70 637 386 61 627 403 64 
			 Criminal damage 530 323 61 483 274 57 1,195 798 67 
			 Drug offences 1,267 1,131 89 1,139 1,001 88 1,133 979 86 
			 Other indictable offences 1,799 854 47 1,687 790 47 1,811 725 40 
			 Indictable motoring offences 294 203 69 260 188 72 293 210 72 
			 Summary offences (excluding motoring) 19,485 16,198 83 20,858 16,682 80 15,595 12,330 79 
			 Summary motoring offences 24,212 20,691 85 23,985 20,062 84 26,345 22,125 84 
			 Total all offences 54,489 43,951 81 55,024 43,119 78 53,132 41,409 78 
		
	
	
		
			  2002 2003 
			 Police force area Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) 
		
		
			 Essex   
			 Violence against the person 1,298 618 48 1,471 702 48 
			 Sexual offences 201 79 39 186 77 41 
			 Burglary 680 405 60 648 410 63 
			 Robbery 206 95 46 171 84 49 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 3,169 2,484 78 2,994 2,457 82 
			 Fraud and forgery 593 395 67 525 386 74 
			 Criminal damage 728 441 61 648 402 62 
			 Drug offences 1,095 981 90 1,038 896 86 
			 Other indictable offences 1,806 726 40 2,001 799 40 
			 Indictable motoring offences 278 192 69 246 183 74 
			 Summary offences (excluding motoring) 17,862 14,255 80 17,298 13,932 81 
			 Summary motoring offences 32,747 26,932 82 26,466 21,960 83 
			 Total all offences 60,663 47,603 78 53,692 42,288 79 
		
	
	
		
			  1999 2000 2001 
			 Police force area Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) 
		
		
			 Metropolitan police   
			 Violence against the person 11,024 4,905 44 11,166 5,076 45 11,853 5,413 46 
			 Sexual offences 1,117 532 48 1,043 463 44 1,283 527 41 
			 Burglary 5,264 3,297 63 5,302 3,276 62 5,310 2,977 56 
			 Robbery 2,806 1,410 50 3,591 1,451 40 4,856 1,767 36 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 23,276 18,511 80 21,363 16,799 79 21,160 16,356 77 
			 Fraud and forgery 4,825 3,306 69 4,609 3,269 71 4,302 2,997 70 
			 Criminal damage 3,137 1,804 58 2,571 1,458 57 2,551 1,340 53 
			 Drug offences 11,280 9,999 89 10,387 8,868 85 11,465 9,181 80 
			 Other indictable offences 12,088 6,995 58 12,038 6,802 57 12,669 7,141 56 
			 Indictable motoring offences 1,162 779 67 1,085 741 68 1,187 767 65 
			 Summary offences (excluding motoring) 96,567 79,401 82 100,234 83,61 1 83 79,562 64,079 81 
			 Summary motoring offences 80,268 63,387 79 71,610 55,542 78 70,370 55,099 78 
			 Total all offences 252,814 194,326 77 244,999 187,356 76 226,568 167,644 74 
		
	
	
		
			  2002 2003 
			 Police force area Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage 
		
		
			 Metropolitan police
			 Violence against the person 12,808 6,394 50 11,992 5,871 49 
			 Sexual offences 1,461 603 41 1,548 567 37 
			 Burglary 5,715 3,339 58 5,343 3,207 60 
			 Robbery 4,872 1,936 40 4,048 1,835 45 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 22,517 17,773 79 20,239 15,845 78 
			 Fraud and forgery 4,816 3,420 71 5,038 3,601 71 
			 Criminal damage 2,437 1,378 57 2,459 1,357 55 
			 Drug offences 12,404 10,461 84 12,327 10,408 84 
			 Other indictable offences 14,518 8,235 57 13,983 7,865 56 
			 Indictable motoring offences 1,304 857 66 1,576 1,008 64 
			 Summary offences (excluding motoring) 98,044 81,098 83 93,106 76,548 82 
			 Summary motoring offences 74,836 59,442 79 78,790 62,518 79 
			 Total all offences 255,732 194,936 76 250,449 190,630 76 
		
	
	
		
			  1999 2000 2001 
			 Police force area Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage) Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage 
		
		
			 Hertfordshire  
			 Violence against the person 903 393 44 973 467 48 1,005 456 45 
			 Sexual offences 114 49 43 103 63 61 87 55 63 
			 Burglary 373 254 68 426 255 60 398 226 57 
			 Robbery 74 63 85 136 57 42 124 89 72 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 1,743 1,315 75 2,015 1,482 74 1,966 1,482 75 
			 Fraud and forgery 376 263 70 445 348 78 343 250 73 
			 Criminal damage 69 40 58 56 37 66 29 41 141 
			 Drug offences 525 447 85 481 421 88 536 462 86 
			 Other indictable offences 871 440 51 905 447 49 960 494 51 
			 Indictable motoring offences 84 67 80 109 81 74 111 80 72 
			 Summary offences (excluding motoring) 9,382 7,324 78 10,640 8,161 77 9,955 7,687 77 
			 Summary motoring offences 12,854 10,203 79 12,218 9,239 76 11,866 8,961 76 
			 Total all offences 27,368 20,858 76 28,507 21,058 74 27,380 20,283 74 
		
	
	
		
			  2002 2003 
			 Police force area Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage Proceeded against Found guilty Conviction rate (percentage 
		
		
			 Hertfordshire   
			 Violence against the person 1,046 539 52 1,190 507 43 
			 Sexual offences 114 70 61 132 52 39 
			 Burglary 524 314 60 545 313 57 
			 Robbery 185 113 61 177 110 62 
			 Theft and handling stolen goods 2,102 1,558 74 2,161 1,671 77 
			 Fraud and forgery 371 280 75 409 297 73 
			 Criminal damage 64 32 50 106 60 57 
			 Drug offences 582 481 83 630 545 87 
			 Other indictable offences 1,025 471 46 1,379 624 45 
			 Indictable motoring offences 149 95 64 198 128 65 
			 Summary offences (excluding motoring) 8,840 6,696 76 11,264 8,469 75 
			 Summary motoring offences 13,823 10,389 75 15,186 11,987 79 
			 Total all offences 28,825 21,038 73 33,377 24,763 74 
		
	
	(17) Conviction rate is based on the proportion of defendants proceeded against, who were found guilty
	Note:
	These data are on the principal offence basis.
	Source:
	RDS—Office For Criminal Justice Reform.

Deportation

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals were deported from the United Kingdom between 1 January and 2 November, broken down by (a) nationality and (b) destination.

Andy Burnham: The Home Office produces quarterly bulletins on the number of asylum seekers removed from the UK, broken down by nationality. The latest available figures cover the second quarter of 2005. Figures for the third quarter of 2005 will be published on 22 November. Information on the destination of asylum removals for the first six months of 2005 is given in the following table.
	Statistics on the number of non-asylum cases removed from the UK are published annually. Figures for 2005 will be published in the summer of 2006. The published statistics are available on the Home Office's Research Development and Statistics website:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html.
	
		Removals and voluntary departuresl of principal asylum applicants, by destination: January to June 2005(19)(20)
		
			 Destination Persons removed 
		
		
			 Europe  
			 Albania 370 
			 Czech Republic 5 
			 Macedonia 15 
			 Moldova 25 
			 Poland 5 
			 Romania 205 
			 Russia 25 
			 Serbia and Montenegro 640 
			 Turkey 175 
			 Ukraine 50 
			 Other Former USSR 70 
			 Other Former Yugo 50 
			 Europe Other 1,060 
			 Europe Total 2,685 
			   
			 Americas  
			 Colombia 95 
			 Ecuador 60 
			 Jamaica 155 
			 Americas Other 75 
			 Americas Total 380 
			   
			 Middle East  
			 Iran 150 
			 Iraq 255 
			 Middle East Other 65 
			 Middle East Total 465 
			   
			 Africa  
			 Algeria 60 
			 Angola 60 
			 Burundi 10 
			 Cameroon 15 
			 Congo 35 
			 Dem. Rep. Congo 15 
			 Eritrea * 
			 Ethiopia 5 
			 Gambia 20 
			 Ghana 130 
			 Ivory Coast 5 
			 Kenya 20 
			 Liberia 15 
			 Nigeria 215 
			 Rwanda 5 
			 Sierra Leone 20 
			 Somalia 10 
			 Sudan 15 
			 Tanzania 20 
			 Uganda 105 
			 Zimbabwe 195 
			 Africa Other 190 
			 Africa Total 1,175 
			   
			 Asia  
			 Afghanistan 400 
			 Bangladesh 125 
			 China 90 
			 India 140 
			 Pakistan 250 
			 Sri Lanka 190 
			 Vietnam 5 
			 Asia Other 130 
			 Asia Total 1,335 
			   
			 Other, and nationality not known 50 
			   
			 Grand total 6,095 
		
	
	(18) Includes persons departing "voluntarily" after enforcement action had been initiated against them, persons leaving under the Assisted Voluntary Return Programme run by the International Organisation for Migration, and removals on safe third country grounds.
	(19) Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5 with * = 1 or 2. Data may not sum due to rounding.
	(20) Provisional figures.

Road Safety

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many road traffic police officers there were in each year between 1990 and 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 7 November 2005
	Data is provided in the table. Figures are only available from 2003 onwards.
	
		Police officers whose main function is Traffic(21), 2003 to 2005
		
			 Total for England and Wales Full-time equivalent(22) 
		
		
			 As at 31 March:  
			 2003 6,901.89 
			 2004 6,702.40 
			 2005 7,103.93 
		
	
	(21) Staff with multiple responsibilities (designations) are recorded under their 'primary' role or function.
	(22) Full-time equivalent includes those on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave.

Departmental Expenditure

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  if he will place in the Library copies of his Department's Chart of Accounts for financial years 1997–98 to 2005–06;
	(2)  if he will list his Department's top level budget holders and their related intermediate and working level management groupings for financial year 2005–06.

Adam Ingram: Yes. I will provide copies from financial year 2000–01 when the Chart of Accounts was first adopted for financial management purposes in the Ministry of Defence. This will also provide the budgetary structure down to basic level Budget. It will take some time for all the information to be collated. Once this has been done I will place copies in the Library of the House.

Iraq

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what estimate (a) he has made and (b) the Iraqi authorities have made of the number of civilian casualties during the events of 19 September 2005 in Basra;
	(2)  whether he has requested the return of the (a) car and (b) equipment seized at the time of the arrest of the two military intelligence officers on 19 September 2005 in Basra;
	(3)  whether the raid on the Jamiyat prison on 26 September 2005 was approved in advance by (a) Officials and (b) Ministers in his Department;
	(4)  what reports he has received of torture being conducted at the Jamiyat prison in Basra;
	(5)  whether either of the two military intelligence officers arrested in Basra on 19 September 2005 were (a) carrying non-UK passports and (b) not of UK nationality;
	(6)  whether compensation will be offered to Iraqi citizens affected by British military action in Basra on 19 September 2005;
	(7)  what reasons have been given by Iraqi police for their arrest of the two British officers in Basra on 19 September 2005;
	(8)  whether Basra's principal council has requested that the two military intelligence officers arrested on 19 September 2005 handed over to Iraqi authorities.

John Reid: holding answer 21 October 2005
	Commanders in the field have full authority to take action to protect life. On 19 September, a day of fast moving events, the Ministry of Defence was consulted throughout. The acting commander of British forces in MND (SE) was able to take the difficult decision to mount the operation to enter the police station in the knowledge that he had the full support of the chain of command. The two British soldiers arrested in Basrah on 19 September by the Iraqi Police Service are both UK nationals and were not carrying the passports of any other nation.
	The car that the two British soldiers were travelling in was not seized. Although some of the personal equipment worn or carried by the British soldiers was removed by the Iraqi Police Service, most was recovered. All the equipment subsequently found in the police station was retrieved.
	Due to the difficulty in obtaining reliable information it is not our policy to comment on civilian casualties. In this case, although we are aware of media reports, we have not been provided with any evidence relating to the deaths of Iraqis.
	The Ministry of Defence has well-established procedures for handling claims for compensation in Multi-National Division (South East) and indeed any other theatre in which we operate. If there are any legitimate claims for negligence that arise out of the events of 19 September, they will be considered in the normal way.
	I am aware of serious allegations of prisoner abuse at the Jameat including two alleged deaths in custody. UK support to the Iraqi Police Service in Basrah and elsewhere is designed among other things to enhance police governance, accountability and respect for human rights. We take this very seriously. We have been pressing the Iraqi authorities very hard in both Basrah and Baghdad to investigate these allegations thoroughly and then to take appropriate action and we will continue to do so.
	The Iraqi Government have said that the two soldiers were arrested because the Iraqi Police Service initially believed them to be terrorists and they were not able to immediately confirm their status as British soldiers. Having confirmed their identity we were extremely concerned when they were not released in accordance with Iraqi law. We have subsequently agreed with the Iraqi Government that in future any such incident will be dealt with in accordance with the relevant articles of Iraqi law, which affirm that the UK retains sole jurisdiction over its armed forces personnel.
	We never received a formal request from either Basrah's principal council or the Iraqi Government to hand the individuals over to the Iraqi authorities. Furthermore an Iraqi judicial inquiry concluded that under Iraqi law there were no grounds for such action, given the immunity of Multinational forces personnel from the Iraqi legal process.
	British forces were fully within their rights to act in the way they did and I fully support their actions.

Terrorism

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has received about the size of the British armed forces and their ability to meet the threats of terrorism in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) the rest of the world.

John Reid: I have received no representations specifically linking the size of the armed forces and their role in the Government's comprehensive counter-terrorism strategy.
	The role of the armed forces in meeting the threat of terrorism was set out clearly in the New Chapter to the Strategic Defence Review (Cmnd 5566) and the two Defence White Papers 'Delivering security in a changing world' and 'Future capabilities' in 2003 and 2004 (Cmnd 6041 and Cmnd 6269).
	The armed forces continue to provide a number of specialist capabilities in support of the civil authorities in the United Kingdom. Although there is no military solution to terrorism, the Government has demonstrated that when necessary it is willing and able to deploy significant forces overseas as part of its counter-terrorism strategy.
	I have received a number of representations relating to the Government's decision to disband the three Home Service battalions of The Royal Irish Regiment when their role in support of the Police Service of Northern Ireland ends as a result of the process of security normalisation which began on 1 August 2005.

Thailand

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether an agreement is in place between the Thai and the British Governments, whereby arms and munitions are supplied by the British in return for chickens from Thailand; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 9 November 2005
	No such agreement exists. The Government is, however, supporting BAE Systems to work with the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand to assist with the modernisation of the Royal Thai Armed Forces. This was affirmed in a Joint Statement on 13 October by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. The text of the Joint Statement can be found at http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page8306.asp

Burundi

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the new government in Burundi regarding the killing of British citizen Charlotte Wilson in December 2000; and if he will press the Burundian Government to take action to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Ian Pearson: We have raised the case of Charlotte Wilson on several occasions with the new Burundian Government. We continue to press the Burundian authorities for progress in bringing Charlotte's killers to justice, and to remind them of the importance we attach to a resolution of the case.
	Most recently, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development (Hilary Benn) raised this case with President Nkurunziza in Bujumbura on 1 November. President Nkurunziza said that his Government was committed to investigating this and many similar cases. We will maintain pressure on the Burundian authorities to bring the perpetrators of this case and similar atrocities to justice.

Maldives

Denis MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the high commissioner in the Maldive Islands has made to the Maldive authorities on the treatment of Mohamed Nasheed and the Maldivian Democratic Party.

Kim Howells: The British high commissioner in Colombo, accredited to the Maldives, has raised our concerns on the trial of Mohamed Nasheed and current political events on several recent occasions. He did so on 26 September with President Gayoom of the Maldives and on 31 October with the Foreign Minister, Ahmed Shaheed.
	The deputy high commissioner also raised these issues with Foreign Minister Ahmed Shaheed in August 2005, shortly after Mr. Nasheed's arrest, and on 27 October, following his first court appearance.
	The British high commission is active in co-ordinating EU action locally. It led an EU fact-finding mission to the Maldives in August that met Government Ministers, officials and detainees, including Mohamed Nasheed. An EU statement issued on 2 September, emphasising the responsibility of the Maldivian authorities to uphold the right of political parties to meet freely and to carry out peaceful political activities. It noted the seriousness of the charges against detainees, called for due process, and made clear that the credibility of such trials would be scrutinised closely. We will continue to underline to the Government of the Maldives its democracy and human rights obligations, both bilaterally and with our EU partners.

Sudan

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Sudan on coordinated offensive operations undertaken by the Government of Sudan and the Janjaweed Arab militia in Darfur (a) on 18 September in Khartoum Djadeed, Sandego, Khasantongur, Tary, Martal and Djabain and (b) on 28 September, in Arusharo, Acho and Gozmena.

Ian Pearson: On 18 and 28 September respectively, Arab Militias attacked the towns and surrounding areas of Khartoum Djadet and Aro Sharrow. We also received unconfirmed reports that the Government of Sudan's airforce acted in co-ordination with the militias during these attacks. The African Union is investigating these incidents and we await their report. Offensive military overflights by the Government of Sudan would constitute a breach of its obligations under the Abuja Security Protocol and, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1591, those responsible are liable to be targeted with a travel ban and assets freeze.
	We have made clear that the recent increase in violence is unacceptable, and that those responsible must be held to account. During the recent EU Ministerial Troika meeting in Sudan on 8 October, both my noble Friend the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister for Africa (Lord Triesman of Tottenham) and the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Secretary-General of the Council of the European Union, Javier Solana, raised recent attacks with the Sudanese Government. The UK, as EU Presidency, has also issued three statements condemning the recent increase in violence and calling on all sides to rein in the belligerents, and to work for a peaceful solution to the conflict.